I am obsessed with this creamy chipotle pasta. The sauce is so easy to make and pretty amazing when you realize that a couple of almonds can make a beautiful cream sauce. The smokiness of the chipotle and the acidity of the lemon juice make it irresistible.
The sauce contains only 6 ingredients almonds, water, almond milk, chipotle, garlic, and lemon juice. Simply place everything in your blender and process until smooth. If you do not have a high powered blender you can soak the almonds overnight. I use raw unpeeled almonds because I prefer their flavor, but if you want an extra creamy sauce you can use blanched almonds or cashews. The sauce shouldn’t be heated because it could break, so when your pasta is done simple toss it with the sauce in a bowl. There is no need heat the pasta and sauce again in pan.
The method for making this sauce was inspired by a sauce made in California called Bitchin’ Sauce. If you live in Cali, you should definitely check it out.
I perfected this recipe while I was living in Hawaii, but it a very homestyle Mexican recipe. The kind that moms and grandmas make at home to feed large crowds. This was one of my favorites before going vegan, so it was only natural that I made a vegan version of this. You can also make a version of this with poblano peppers.
The Recipe: Vegan Creamy Chipotle Pasta
- The sauce is best used immediately.
- You can use cashews instead of almonds if you prefer.
- I also love pouring this sauce on top of my baked potatoes or as a sauce for my chiles rellenos.
- If you do not have a high powered blender: Pour boiling water on top of almonds and let sit overnight. Remove skins by pressing the almond between your fingers. The skin should pop off easily. Reduce the amount of water in the recipe to 1/4 cup, then add more if needed to adjust consistency.
- Enjoy!
Vegan Creamy Chipotle Pasta
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Almonds, whole, raw
- 1/4 cup Almond milk, unsweetened (or vegetable oil)
- 1 Chipotle pepper in Adobo, (only one of the peppers in the can)
- 1 clove Garlic
- 3/4 cup Water
- 1/2 cup Tomato, fire roasted, canned
- 1 tbsp. Lemon juice, fresh
- 1/2 lb. Spaghetti, whole wheat
- 1 tbsp. Cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Place the almonds, almond milk, water, chipotle, garlic clove, roasted tomato, and lemon juice in a blender and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
- Boil pasta according to the instructions on the box. Drain and place in a large bowl.
- Pour chipotle sauce over pasta and mix well.
- Serve with chopped cilantro on top.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Ever try this with cashew instead of almonds?
I haven’t. Cashews are too sweet for my taste in this sauce, but they should work just fine.
Is this pasta meant to be eaten could?
No Anita, it is meant to be eaten hot. I don’t heat up the sauce because if it can break at high temperatures. Drain the pasta that has been boiling and toss immediately with the sauce and serve.
I used cashews because i didnt have almonds i ran out of them, it turned yummy :-)
Glad you liked it!
Looks good! How many people should this recipe serve? :)
It serves 3 people. I usually double it up to serve my whole family.
Aloha from Oahu as well! So excited to find and try this recipe. I’d like to invite you to join our hiking group, Hiking with Keiki, if you have not heard of us already!
Hi Stephanie I have not heard of you guys. I will definitely look you guys up
I made this recipe, but having never heard of chipotle in adobo, I googled it. Behold! A canned sauce! Found it in my grocery store.
We took it to mean one CAN of chipotle in adobo.
I’m sweating after three bites, my husband loved it (he’s a HUGE fan of spice) but we’ve basically thrown it all out.
What on earth did you mean by chipotle in adobo and why is the can not the same thing?
My husband said the Internet would laugh at us for this comment, but if we made the mistake…. it could be make by someone else. Thanks!
Hi Erin, I’m so sorry if the recipe wasn’t clear enough. What I meant was 1 ea. chipotle pepper, so only 1 of the chipotle peppers in the can. I will add a note to the recipe. I hope you guys are brave enough to try the recipe again.
Hi love the idea of this recipe, i’m thinking of making this in a few batches and freezing the sauce so I have a some pre-made dinners. Do you know if your sauce freezes well? Thanks!
Hi Dayna. I’ve never tried to freeze it before, but I think the sauce would separate in the freezer.
I am also considering this for the next time I make it. I think I’m going to try and freeze it into cubes, and then pop them in the blender when I’m ready to use them again.
I just made this last night, and it turned out wonderfully. Next time I make it, I might try and add another pepper, though, as it wasn’t quite as spicy as I expected. My sauce did turn out very hot because I used my vitamix which heats up while it blends. When I made the dish, my husband and I didn’t think it was enough to serve two people, so we ate it on the side of a fresh loaf of bread. However, after eating I realized that I was unbelievably full and I believe it is because the almonds are deceptively filling! So keep that in mind. Thanks for the recipe!
HI Paige,
Thanks for the comment. I’m glad you enjoyed it. You can add as many chipotle peppers as you like, and yes the almonds do make this a very filling dish. I have never tried freezing the sauce, my only concern would be that the sauce could separate.
Just made this and this recipe had me licking my plate clean!! Wow!! It barely takes anytime for a vegan recipe, which is super important to me! Thanks!!!
Glad you enjoyed it!!
Hello, can I use chipotle seasoning instead and take out the raw almonds?
Hi Kia, you can use chipotle seasoning, but the sauce will not work without the almonds. Do you have a nut allergy?
Looks like a great dish. I’ll give it a shot.
I made a similar kind of recipe. I was trying to make carbonara. Instead using guanciale, i.e. smoked pork cheek, I sautéed mushrooms and finish them with some adobo sauce. I then added this to a cashew cream, lemon and nutritional yeast mixture to which I added and tossed the hot pasta.
That’s such a great idea for a recipe!
This is the best recipe, definitely one of the top 10 ever!!!! I have shared this with many of my friends and they love it as well. Easy and incredibly tasty. Thanks so much!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!
Hi, my family loved this recipe. I used sun-dried tomatoes instead of fire roasted because I didn’t have any on me. Thank you for this recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it! Sundried tomatoes are a great idea.
I used raw cashews because I wanted to make it the same day without soaking the almonds, and it turned out great! Also, used zucchini noodles. Everyone loved it!!! Adding it to the usual dinner rotation! So easy and delicious!!
It works really well with raw cashews! So glad you liked it!
This is so delicious and easy to make!
Oh em gee! So easy and delicious! Thanks! My hubby said we will add it in the rotation.
Hello! Curious… have you or anyone else tried almond butter in this sauce? I don’t have a good blender and wondered if that would work out.
I’ve never tried it before, the only thing I can think if is that it might ve darker since the almonds for almond butter are usually roasted.
This is, hands down, one of the best recipes I have ever made. I have made it many times as it is something we all crave. It is incredibly delicious, simple and I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe with us. Our family is not vegan but we all love it so much. I often serve it with chicken or shrimp …. it goes with everything!
Thank you so much for your comment. Glad you guys enjoy it!
Your recipe was very tasty. I do have a question regarding the crema…
I used 1/2 cup of blanched slivered almonds and the almond milk instead of the oil. The cream was very watery. Any suggestions?
Oops I posted this on wrong recipe. I actually made the rajas tacos today and crema was too watery.
I am planning to make the creamy chipotle pasta tomorrow and hope to figure out my mistake so I don’t end up with a watery sauce for that recipe. Thank you!
Hi Jeannette, I used whole almonds with the peel for this recipe. If you use blanched and slivered almonds the amount of water you will need will be less.
Everyone loved it! Along with the cilantro I topped it with sauted mushrooms.
The easiest dinner I’ve ever cooked!
So glad it was a hit!
This was delicious! I may become addicted to the sauce. I made it with chickpea pasta as I’m pre-diabetic and this is a satisfying meal. Can’t wait to try all the other recipes. Muchísimas gracias!
You can also add it to bake potatoes or even enchiladas